Rabbi Aryeh Leibowitz, rav of Beis HaKnesses of North Woodmere, wrote the following to his kehilla earlier this week: “During times of mourning (and there is much to mourn for as over a thousand people have already been murdered), the halacha demands that we curb our social behavior. Times of war are not the time for unnecessary parties, going out to shows and restaurants (order in if you don't want to cook), or paying attention to silliness such as sports and fantasy teams. Of course, we all need to clear our heads and function as human beings, but we should do so in a way that reflects the sense of חבירו עם בעול נושא that the moment demands. Chazal teach us that מלחמות are דגאולה אתחלתא, and we should merit to see the words of the נביאים come to life as Hashem reveals His master plan.”
On the miracle of the State of Israel, in his Kol Dodi Dofek (presented just eight years after the founding of the Medinah, in 1956), Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, the Rav zt’l, stated, “Let us not forget that the venom of Hitlerian anti-semitism, which made the Jews like the fish of the sea to be preyed upon by all, still infects many in our generation who viewed the horrific spectacle of the gassing of millions with indifference, as an ordinary event not requiring a moment’s thought. The antidote to this deadly poison that envenomed minds and benumbed hearts is the readiness of the State of Israel to defend the lives of its sons, its builders. It is the voice of my Beloved that knocketh!
“This knock, which we must not ignore, was heard when the gates of the land were opened. A Jew who flees from a hostile country now knows that he can find a secure refuge in the land of his ancestors. This is a new phenomenon in our history. Until now, whenever Jewish communities were expelled from their lands, they had to wander in the wilderness of the nations, and were not able to find shelter in another land. Because the gates were barred before exiles and wanderers, many Jewish communities were decimated. Now the situation has changed. If a particular people expels the Jewish minority from its midst, the exiles can direct their steps unto Zion, and she, like a compassionate mother, will gather in her children. We have all been witness to Oriental Jewry’s settling in the land of Israel in the past few years. Who knows what might have befallen our brethren in the lands in which they had settled had not the land of Israel brought them by boats and planes to her? Had the State of Israel arisen before Hitler’s Holocaust, hundreds of thousands of Jews might have been saved from the gas chambers and crematoria. The miracle of the State came just a bit late, and as a result of this delay thousands and tens of thousands of Jews were murdered. However, now that the era of divine self-concealment (hester panim) is over, Jews who have been uprooted from their homes can find lodging in the Holy Land. Let us not view this matter lightly! It is the voice of my Beloved that knocketh!” (Fate and Destiny, p.34-35)
May HKB”H have rachamim upon us, k’rachem Av al banim, and may the yeshua (salvation), nechama (comfort), and binyan adei ad (an everlasting and eternal building) be immediately revealed. וישועות טובות בשורות בברכת ,בבכי הכותבת גָבַר יכִּ ,שׁוֹמֵמִים בָנַי הָיוּ ;ישִׁנַפְ יבשִׁמֵ ,מְנַחֵם ינִּמֶּמִ רָחַק-יכִּ--יִםמַּ יֹרְדָה עֵינִי עֵינִי ,היָּבוֹכִ אֲנִי הלֶּאֵ-עַל אוֹיֵב
